In these modern times, martial arts are more a form of exercise, a type of self defense and a sporting event. These ancient combat arts, however, were created to help soldiers in battle. Muay Thai, now such a staple of mixed martial arts fighting, was created for use on the battlefield.
Because of its versatility, fighters train in the art of Muay Thai when preparing for an MMA battle. Combining clinching, striking and punching, Muay Thai uses eight different points of contact. In addition, it is relatively easy to learn, which makes it a great tool for MMA and during war.
In its most ancient form, Muay Thai was known as muay boran. This art was an excellent battlefield defense. When a soldier lost his weapon, he would use muay boran fighting instead. This was sometimes even more deadly than a conventional weapon.
Eventually muay boran became what is now known as Muay Thai. By the 1500s, Siamese soldiers were all trained with muay boran or Muay Thai skills. Muay Thai was even a recognized way to settle political disagreements or settle other national issues.
After the 1767 battle of Ayutthaya, Burmese soldiers captured this ancient Siamese capital and rounded up thousands of Thai soldiers. During a Burmese festival, the king decided to have one of these Thai prisoners use Muay Thai in a fight against Burmese fighters who would use the Burmese martial art of lethwei. The Thai fighter, Nai Khnanomtom, began his fight with a dance to honor his ancestors. After Nai Khanomtom handily defeated the Burmese fighter, the King declared the match invalid because he thought the pre-fight dance was black magic and distracted the Burmese fighter. So he paired the Thai fighter up against nine more seasoned Burmese fighters. Nai Khanomtom easily defeated all of these fighters, and this incident is a huge part of Thai martial arts folklore.
Many of Thailand's kings were huge supporters of Muay Thai. King Pra Chao Sua who ruled during the relatively peaceful years of 1703 to 1709 not only required his soldiers to become skilled in Muay Thai, he, himself, would fight in local bouts incognito. During these years, it became a huge national pastime and even was included as training in local schools. King Rama V was yet another huge proponent of Muay Thai and honored the winners of Royal Command fights with military titles. King Rama VI was the first king to encourage that rules be put into place. During his reign from 1925 to 1935, referees were added, and matches were timed. In addition, gloves and coverlets for the ankles and feet were added to increase safety.
As the years passed, Muay Thai became popular throughout Asia and then in the United States, where it was incorporated into Mixed Martial Arts. Many MMA fighters are well trained in the art of Muay Thai, including champions such as Anderson da Silva, Muaricio Rua, Cristiane Santos and many more.
Because of its versatility, fighters train in the art of Muay Thai when preparing for an MMA battle. Combining clinching, striking and punching, Muay Thai uses eight different points of contact. In addition, it is relatively easy to learn, which makes it a great tool for MMA and during war.
In its most ancient form, Muay Thai was known as muay boran. This art was an excellent battlefield defense. When a soldier lost his weapon, he would use muay boran fighting instead. This was sometimes even more deadly than a conventional weapon.
Eventually muay boran became what is now known as Muay Thai. By the 1500s, Siamese soldiers were all trained with muay boran or Muay Thai skills. Muay Thai was even a recognized way to settle political disagreements or settle other national issues.
After the 1767 battle of Ayutthaya, Burmese soldiers captured this ancient Siamese capital and rounded up thousands of Thai soldiers. During a Burmese festival, the king decided to have one of these Thai prisoners use Muay Thai in a fight against Burmese fighters who would use the Burmese martial art of lethwei. The Thai fighter, Nai Khnanomtom, began his fight with a dance to honor his ancestors. After Nai Khanomtom handily defeated the Burmese fighter, the King declared the match invalid because he thought the pre-fight dance was black magic and distracted the Burmese fighter. So he paired the Thai fighter up against nine more seasoned Burmese fighters. Nai Khanomtom easily defeated all of these fighters, and this incident is a huge part of Thai martial arts folklore.
Many of Thailand's kings were huge supporters of Muay Thai. King Pra Chao Sua who ruled during the relatively peaceful years of 1703 to 1709 not only required his soldiers to become skilled in Muay Thai, he, himself, would fight in local bouts incognito. During these years, it became a huge national pastime and even was included as training in local schools. King Rama V was yet another huge proponent of Muay Thai and honored the winners of Royal Command fights with military titles. King Rama VI was the first king to encourage that rules be put into place. During his reign from 1925 to 1935, referees were added, and matches were timed. In addition, gloves and coverlets for the ankles and feet were added to increase safety.
As the years passed, Muay Thai became popular throughout Asia and then in the United States, where it was incorporated into Mixed Martial Arts. Many MMA fighters are well trained in the art of Muay Thai, including champions such as Anderson da Silva, Muaricio Rua, Cristiane Santos and many more.
About the Author:
Rod Bourgoine enjoys writing about mixed martial arts benefits. For further information about San Diego muay thai or to find muay thai in San Diego, please check out The Arena MMA website now.
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